Sheet handling apparatus



Jan. 27, 1942. J E. FORTESCUE ET AL ,1

SHEET HANDLING APPARATUS Filed Sept. 12, 1939 3 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTQRS JBkn Efbrlescue L Ham/d H Greer ATTOR Patented 1942 r 2,271,187 sneer HANDLING APPARATUS John E. Fortescue, Alcoa, and Harold H. Greer, e, Tenn., assignors to Aluminum Com: pany of America, Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application September 12, 1939, Serial No. 294,488.

7 Claims.

This invention relates to sheet handling and piling apparatus, and more particularly to apparatus for stacking metal sheets or plates uni formly in a pile or stack as they are delivered from a metal-working machine.

One object of theinvention is to provide a sheet piling mechanism capable of stacking sheets in a pileas rapidly as they canbe delivered to the piling mechanism.

Another object of the invention is to provide an apparatus of the foregoing character, wherein successively rapidly moving sheets are discharged laterally by gravity during traveling movement thereof, whereby the stacking rate will not be adversely affected when handlingor stacking sheets of various lengths.

Another object'of the invention is to provide a sheet stacker adapted to receive sheets successively and to automatically pile them without injuring the sheets or marring the surfaces thereof.

A further object of the invention is to provide a sheet-metal stacker which is particularly suitable for use in cooperation with an automatic or flying shear, whereby the shear can be operated at the greatest feasible rate to cut continuously moving strip stock into desired lengths and the sheets accurately assembled in a pile.

Still another object of the invention is to provide sheet handling apparatus of generally simplified and improved form capable of handling sheets of varying sizes and in which a minimum of moving and operating parts are required.

. Further objects and advantages of the inven tion will become apparent as the detailed description proceeds, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings wherein:

Fig. 1 is a side elevational view of a sheet-conveying and stacking device, showing the same in operative relationship with a flying shear, a portion of the shear being shown in section;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the apparatus of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken on the line III-III of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a view on an enlarged scale taken on the line IV-IV of Fig. 1; and

I Fig. 5is a view on an enlarged scale taken on the line VV of Fig.2.

In Figs. 1 and 2 of the drawings, an automatic or flying shear [0, suitable to cut continuously moving rolled metal strip into predetermined lengths, is fragmentarily illustrated. Any well known shear of this type may be employed. The shear shown is provided with a pair of shear knives II that are actuated to sever successive sheet portions of predetermined length from the strip or stock fed thereto by driven feed rolls l2 and strip straightening rolls l3. Since'the shear device per se forms no part of the present invention, further description thereof is not deemed necessary, reference being made to Letters Patent of the United States No. 2,144,308 issued January 17, 1939, to Karl W.

Hallden, for a detailed description of theshear. For a purpose to be hereinafter described, the shear is provided with a driven shaft I! that is suitably connected with'the gear train mechanism which drives the feed rolls |2--l 3, the shaft being provided with a sprocket wheel IS-around 1 which a chain l6 passes.

In order that the shear maybe actuated at the highest feasible rate to obtain thereby the maximum output of sheets, an automatic stacking device is provided wherein primarily the sheets are carried away from the shear by an endless carrier in a transversely unbalanced condition and permitted automatically to gravitate from the carrier into stacked relation when sufliciently removed from the shear.

The stacker is positioned on the discharge side of the shear, and, as shown more'clearly in Fig. 2, is laterally olfset relative to the line of discharge or center line of the shear. The stacker comprises a frame I! carrying on its upper side a plurality of longitudinally spaced idler rolls l8 and an end roll or drum l9. At its end adjacent to the shear, the frame is provided with an extension 20 which carries at its forward end a roller or drum 2| that is mounted upon a. shaft 22 suitably journalled in the framework. A belt pulley 2: is also secured to the shaft 22. A pair of flexible endless belts 23 are trained around the endmost rolls I9 and 2|, and a short auxiliary belt 23a passes around the pulley 2m and an idler pulley Ma. The upper runs of the belts 23 are supported on the intermediate idler rolls I8, while the lower runs of the belts extend from the roller 19 forwardly around an idler roll 24, around a driving drum '25 and a pair of belt tensioning rolls 26 (Fig. 4) to the front drum 2!.

As shownmore clearly in Fig. 4, the tensionlng rolls 26 are journalled on the upper ends of a pair of arms 21 that are loosely supported on the heretofore mentioned chain It extends.

Thus, it will be seen that the conveyor belts 23 and 23a will be driven from the shearmechanism drive, the upper runs of the belts moving in a direction indicated by the arrow in Fig. 1, so that sheets discharged from the shear will be carried away therefrom.'- The linear rate of so that there will be no overlapping of the sheets as they are deliveredtoitheconveyo If desired, however, the convey'ormay be actuated at a speed sli ly greater than the feeding movement of the strip, whereby movement of the sheets will be accelerated relative to the feeding movement of the strip, which will result in efj fecting slight spacing between successive sheets. with some other types of metal working machines other than illustrated, it may be advantageous to provide a separate driving motor for theconveyor.

The upper horizontal portion of the conveyor is elevated relative to the line of feed of the material through the shear, that portion of the conveyor between the forward drum H and the foremost idler roll it being inclined upwardly. The forward edge of the strip prior to a cutting operation moves into engagement with the inclined portion of the conveyor and is directed upwardly thereby, strip assuming an upwardly bowed form. The auxiliary belt 23a is also inclined upwardly.

As heretofore mentioned, the conveyor belts 21 are offset relative to the longitudinal center line of the sheet material, the amount of said oilset being such that as the sheets move past the end of the auxiliary belt 23a, they assume a transversely unbalanced condition relative to the belts 23, that is, the major portion of the sheets in a transverse direction is not supported by the conveyor, but overhangs the inner longitudinal edge of the conveyor, as illustrated at 38 in Fig. 3, whereby the sheets tend to rock about the'inside edge of the conveyor. A holddown roller 34 (Figs. 1 and 5) is rotatably mounted on a stub shaft 35 that is carried by an upright post 36. The roller 34 serves to hold the sheets down on the conveyor belts sumciently so that they will be advanced thereby. The roller 34 is vertically adjustable relative to the supporting post 36 so that the hold-down pressure thereof may be varied as'deslred. Rearwardly of the roller ll is another hold-down roller 31 which is similarly journalled on a supporting post its, the sheets being held down on the conveyor until the rear ends thereof pass the hold-down roller 31. The rollers 3t and 31 may be covered with a suitable fibrous material so that the surface of the sheets will not be scratched thereby. The hold-down devices 34 and 31, as shown more clearly in Figs. hand 5, are rotatably supported at one end only, the other ends of the rollers forming an open throat past which the sheets move. Thus sheets of various widths may be accommodated ments to the apparatus.

' In operation. the successive sheets are received by the conveyor and moved away from the shear. Initially, each sheet it supported across its width by the side-by-side arrangement As the rear end of a sheet moves past the the forward portion of the roller 31, it rocks or pivots on thevedge of the conveyor 28 due to the transversely unbalanced condition thereof, and by gravityis automatically discharged sidewise from the conveyor. In the preferred form of the invention an inclined discharge chute or deflector II (Fig.3) is arranged along the inner side of the conveyor 23 and this deflector is curved upward slightly at its lower edge .to deflect the sheets upwardly from the inclined plane of the deflector into a generally horizontal plane, so that they'aresubstantially horizontal or flat as discharged from the deflector. as shown in Fig. 3. If desired, deflector it may be constructed in the form of a mechanically driven or gravity actuated conveyor adapted to operate in a direction substantially at right angles to conveyor belts 23. With either construction the sheets move diagonally across the deflector 30 under such momentum that they are projected substantially horizontally therefrom, as illustrated in Fig. 3, and the successively delivered horizontal sheets thereafter gravitate or drop flatwise into superposed position with substantial accuracy to form a regularly built pile as on a suitable table or sheet receiver 40. The table is provided with stakes ll extending across the horizontal path of the without need for adjustof conveyor belts 23 and 23a. If the conveyor will be accelerated when out from projected sheets against which theleading or foremost edge of the sheets impinge and drop onto the pile. The table is so disposed that the stakes U are spaced from the deflector It a distance slightly greater than the width of the sheets, to permit the sheets to pass vertically therebetweenafter engaging the stakes. Such spacing is determined by the width of the sheets since the sheets are discharged sidewise from the deflector, and results in reducing to a minimum the distance through which the sheets travel as they are discharged from the deflector.

In order to prevent scratching of the sheets as they tilt on the edge of the conveyor and begin to slide across the deflector 3|, a strip of suitable .flexible fabric material 42 is provided along the upper edge of the deflector 38. The upper surface of the deflector also is formed of a suitable non-scratching, flbrous material so that the sheets will not be scratched or otherwise marred when passing thereover.

The auxiliary support 23a is provided so that when short pieces of material are being delivered by the shear, they will be carried up the inclined portion of the conveyor belts properly. However, when long sheets are being delivered, it is not necessary to provide such auxiliary support since the longer sheets will be caught by the roller 34 before the sheets are sheared from the strip.

It will be seen that by operating in the manner described, metal sheets successively delivered to the apparatus are caused to tilt automatically during traveling movement thereof and thereby discharge sidewise from the conveyor. Thus, one sheet is discharged from the conveyor while the succeeding sheet is being advanced. Since the sheets automatically gravitate laterally from the conveyor when they pass the end of the auxiliary supporting belt 230 and the roller 31, no periodical operable mechanism is required, so that the apparatus is capable of handling the sheets as rapidly as they can be delivered thereto.

While the apparatus herein described in detail has been particularly designed and employed in cooperation-with a n shear to pile. rapidly moving sheets cut from continuously moving rolled metal strip, it will be apparent that the ferred to, it is to be understood that articles v 2,271,187 piler can be employed with other types ofmetal tudinal center line of said sheets, whereby the major portion of each sheet overhangs said one generally of sheet-like form such as plates,

stampings, and forgings of substantially flat form, of metal or other material.- can readily be handled and stacked in a uniform pile.

The invention may-be carried out in other specific ways than herein set forth without departing from the spirit and essential characteristics of the invention, and the present embodiment is to be only considered asillustrative of means cooperating with said conveyor for holding the sheets down on the conveyor, each sheet automatically tilting relative to the conveyor and gravitating sidewise therefrom when the rear end of the sheet passes said holding means, and means arranged along said edge of the conveyor to receive said gravitating sheets and to project them substantially horizontally, for gravitational flatwi'se discharge into a pile.

2. A sheet-piler comprising aconveyor adapted to receive successive sheets to be stacked in a pile, means for actuating the conveyor to advance the sheets, the major transverse portion of each sheet overhanging one edge of the conveyor, an auxiliary support at the receiving end of said conveyor and spaced laterally therefrom to support said overhanging portion of the sheets, each sheet automatically tilting relative to the conveyor and discharging laterally therefrom upon movement past said support, and means for deflecting said discharging sheets upwardly into a generally horizontal path of projection, for gravitation flatwise into a pile.

3. A sheet-piler comprising a conveyoradapted to receive successive sheets to be stacked in a pile;

conveyor in position to receive the sheets therefrom for movement thereacross, the lower edge of the deflector being curved upwardly to deflect the sheets into a substantially horizontal plane,

for projection therefrom in said plane, and a sheet receiver having. uprights extending'across said path of the projected sheets'against which the sheets impinge and'drop into a pile on the said receiver..

4. A sheet-piier comprising an endless belt conveyor adapted to receive at one end thereof successive sheets to be stacked in a pile, means for driving, the conveyor, an inclined discharge chute disposed along one side of the conveyor, said conveyor being laterally ofiset relativeto the longiside of the conveyor, means for holding the sheets down on'the conveyor so that they will be advanced thereby to a position overlying said chute, each sheet being automatically discharged from said conveyor and moved diagonally across said chuteby gravity when its rear end passes said holding means, said chute terminating in a horizontal direction for directing said sheets into a substantially horizontal discharge path, a sheet receiver disposed outwardly and below the lower end of said chute for receiving the sheets in stacked relation thereon, and upright members along the side of said receiver opposite the end of said chute, to interrupt horizontal movement of the sheets. i

'5. In a sheet handling apparatus, a conveyor adapted to receive sheets successively, means for actuating the conveyor to advance the sheets lengthwise, said conveyor being laterally offset relative to said sheets to such an extent that the sheets will tilt on one edge of the conveyor and discharge laterally therefrom, restraining means disposed above the conveyor adjacent the receiving end thereof, each sheet tilting laterally and automatically discharging sidewise from said conveyor when its trailing edge passes beyond said restraining means, said restraining means comprising a transverse roller joumalled for rotation at one end, the other end of the roller being open to permit passage of sheets of various widths therebeneath, a sheet deflector along said edge of the conveyor for discharging the sheets generally horizontally therefrom, and a sheet receiver having upright members against which the deflected sheets impinge and drop into a pile on the said receiver.

6. In sheet handling and stacking apparatus, the combination with a pair of conveyors disposed in side-by-side relation to receive sheets presented successively thereto, means for driving said conveyors to advance the sheets, one of said conveyors being longer than the other, whereby each sheet as it advances beyond the end of the shorter conveyor assumes a transversely unbalanced position relative to said longer conveyor, a hold-down roller disposed above said conveyors adjacent said end of the short conveyor, each sheet tilting relative to said longer con-. veyor and discharging laterally therefrom when its rear end passes beyond said roller, and means for deflecting and discharging said tilted sheets substantially horizontally for movement flatwise into stacked relation.

7. In sheet handling and stacking apparatus, the combination with a pair of endless belt conveyors disposed in side-by-side relation, means for driving said conveyors to advance the sheets lengthwise, one of said conveyors being extended relative to the other, whereby said sheets assume a transversely unbalanced condition when .advancing past the end of said other conveyor and discharge laterally by gravitating from said extended conveyor, means for deflecting said discharging sheets into a horizontal path of projection, upright members positioned to be engaged by said deflected sheets, and a table below said horizontal path for receiving the sheetsv in stacked relation thereon.

, JOHN E. FORTESCUE.

HAROLD H. GREER. 

